Video game guidance system

ABSTRACT

A game guide system, method, and apparatus are provided. A system for providing computer simulated game guidance content, comprising a game guide database, a game objectives database, a network connector configured to communicate with a plurality of user devices over a network, and a control circuit. The control circuit is configured to receive a game guide request from a user, receive an audio segment recorded from a game by a user device associated with the user, identify the game and a game objective from the game objectives database based on the audio segment, select a content item in the game guide database based on the game objective, and provide the content item to the user.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to computer-simulated videogames, and more specifically to providing game guide for video games.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

Printed strategy guides for video games have traditionally beenpublished to provide players with hints and solutions for the games.Player communities also share walkthroughs and tips on the Internet.However, the conventional game strategy guide format is often not wellsuited for modern games with increasing complexity, variation, anddegree of freedom.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One embodiment provides a system for providing computer simulated gameguidance content, comprising a game guide database, a game objectivesdatabase, a network connector configured to communicate with a pluralityof user devices over a network, and a control circuit coupled to thegame guide database, the game objectives database, and the networkconnector. The control circuit being configured to receive, via thenetwork connector, a game guide request from a user, receive, via thenetwork connector, an recording from a game by a user device associatedwith the user, identify the game and a game objective from the gameobjectives database based on the recording, select a content item in thegame guide database based on the game objective, and provide, to theuser device via the network connector, the content item to the user.

Another embodiment provides a method for providing computer simulatedgame guidance content, comprising receiving, via a network connectorcoupled to a control circuit, a game guide request from a user,receiving, via the network connector, an recording from a game by a userdevice associated with the user, identifying, with the control circuit,identify the game and a game objective from a game objectives databasebased on the recording, selecting, with the control circuit, a contentitem in a game guide database based on the game objective, andproviding, to the user device via the network connector, the contentitem to the user.

Another embodiment provides a non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium storing one or more computer programs configured to cause aprocessor-based system to execute steps comprising receiving, via anetwork connector, a game guide request from a user, receiving, via thenetwork connector, an recording recorded from a game by a user deviceassociated with the user, identifying the game and a game objective froma game objectives database based on the recording, selecting a contentitem in a game guide database based on the game objective, andproviding, to the user device via the network connector, the contentitem to the user.

Another embodiment provides a system for providing computer simulatedgame guidance content, comprising a game guide database, a gameobjectives database, a network connector configured to communicate witha plurality of user devices over a network, and a control circuitcoupled to the game guide database, the game objectives database, andthe network connector. The control circuit being configured to receive,via the network connector, a game guide request from a user, receive,via the network connector, an audio segment recorded from a game by auser device associated with the user, identify the game and a gameobjective from the game objectives database based on the audio segment,select a content item in the game guide database based on the gameobjective, and provide, to the user device via the network connector,the content item to the user.

Another embodiment provides a method for providing computer simulatedgame guidance content, comprising receiving, via a network connectorcoupled to a control circuit, a game guide request from a user,receiving, via the network connector, an audio segment recorded from agame by a user device associated with the user, identifying, with thecontrol circuit, identify the game and a game objective from a gameobjectives database based on the audio segment, selecting, with thecontrol circuit, a content item in a game guide database based on thegame objective, and providing, to the user device via the networkconnector, the content item to the user.

Another embodiment provides a non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium storing one or more computer programs configured to cause aprocessor-based system to execute steps comprising receiving, via anetwork connector, a game guide request from a user, receiving, via thenetwork connector, an audio segment recorded from a game by a userdevice associated with the user, identifying the game and a gameobjective from a game objectives database based on the audio segment,selecting a content item in a game guide database based on the gameobjective, and providing, to the user device via the network connector,the content item to the user.

A better understanding of the features and advantages of variousembodiments of the present invention will be obtained by reference tothe following detailed description and accompanying drawings which setforth an illustrative embodiment in which principles of embodiments ofthe invention are utilized.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of embodiments ofthe present invention will be more apparent from the following moreparticular description thereof, presented in conjunction with thefollowing drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a system for providing game guidein accordance with some embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a user device for providing gameguide in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram showing a method for providing game guide inaccordance with some embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram showing a method for generating and updating adynamic game guide in accordance with some embodiments of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 5 is an illustration of a tree diagram of game objectives and gamestates in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In some embodiments described herein, a system for providing gameguidance content is provided. The system uses a user device to recordgame generated audio, video, and/or images, which is used to identifythe game and a game objective. The identified game objective is thenused by a game guide server to provide relevant game guide content toassist the player in achieving the objective. In some embodiments, thegame guide server is further configured to use an interactive voiceresponse decision tree to identify relevant game guidance content. Insome embodiments, the game guide server may further use game informationcaptured by the user device (e.g. audio, visual information) and userinput to generate a dynamic game guide by identifying potentialobjectives associated with a game and associating game guidance contentwith identified objectives.

Referring first to FIG. 1, there is shown a system for providing gameguidance. The system comprises a game system 130, a playback device 131for interacting with a user 125, a user device 120, and a game guideserver 110 coupled to a game objectives database 140 and a game guidedatabase 150.

The game system 130 generally refers to a system for providing computersimulated game content. The game system 130 may comprise aprocessor-based device executing a set of computer-readable instructionsassociated with a video game stored on a computer-readable memorystorage device. In some embodiments, the game system 130 may compriseone or more of a game console, a home entertainment console, a personalcomputer, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, and portable gamingdevice, a mobile device, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a virtualreality device, a mix reality device, and the like. In some embodiments,the game system 130 may be coupled to a network, such as the Internet,to provide game and other media content.

The playback device 131 generally refers to a user output device foroutputting gameplay content to the user 125. The playback device 131 maycomprise a video output and an audio output. In some embodiments, theplayback device 131 may comprise one or more of a speaker, a headset, atelevision, a monitor, a home entertainment system, a virtual realitydisplay, a mix reality display, a projection display, smart glasses, anInternet of Things (IoT) device, and the like. In some embodiments, theplayback device 131 and/or the game system 130 further comprises one ormore input devices such as a handheld controller, a motion sensor, aneye tracker, a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, an optical sensor, thelike. In some embodiments, the game system 130 and the playback device131 may comprise a single integrated device such as a handheld gameconsole, a smartphone, a laptop computer and the like.

The user device 120 generally comprises a device configured to interactwith the user 125 via audio. In some embodiments, the user device 120comprises a control circuit, a speaker, and a microphone. In someembodiments, the user device 120 may comprise other user input/outputdevices such as a display, a touch screen, a keyboard, buttons, a motionsensor, and the like. In some embodiments, the user device 120 maycomprise one or more of a smart speaker, a voice assistance device, amobile phone, a smartphone, a computer, a tablet device, a wearabledevice, smart glasses, an IoT device and the like. The user device 120is generally configured to capture game audio from the playback device131, receive voice commands from the user 125, and provide game guidecontent to the user 125. In some embodiments, the user device 120 isfurther configured to interact with the user via interactive voiceresponse (IVR). In some embodiments, the user device 120 may further beconfigured to capture images from the playback device 131. The userdevice 120 may be independent and separate from the game system 130 andthe playback device 131 and be configured to capture audio from both theplayback device 131 and the user 125. For example, aside from thecaptured audio and/or images through a microphone and/or camera, theuser device 120 may not have other data communication with the gamesystem 130 and the playback device 131. In some embodiments, the userdevice 120 may be implemented on the same physical device as the gamesystem 130 and/or the playback device 131. For example, an applicationon a smartphone may monitor the audio and/or video output of anotherapplication to provide game guidance. Further details of the user device120 are described with reference to FIG. 2 herein.

The game guide server 110 generally refers to a networked device forproviding game guide content to the user 125. The game guide server 110comprises a network connector configured to communicate with a pluralityof user devices 120 over a network such as the Internet. In someembodiments, the game guide server 110 is further configured toaggregate game information and organize game guide content based oninformation captured by a plurality of user device 120. In someembodiments, the game guide server 110 comprises a processor-baseddevice executing a set of computer-readable codes stored on acomputer-readable memory storage to provide game guide content via userdevices and/or update a dynamic game guide. In some embodiments, thegame guide server 110 may be implemented on a plurality of physicalprocessor-based devices on a network. In some embodiments, the gameguide server 110 may comprise a network-based, a cloud-based, and/or adistributed database-based server. Further details of the functions ofthe game guide server 110 are described with reference to FIG. 3-4herein.

The game objectives database 140 generally comprises a computer-readablestorage medium storing game and game objective information associatedwith a plurality of games. In some embodiments, the game objectivesdatabase 140 may store audio associated with a plurality of gameobjectives. A game objective generally refers to something a playerwants to achieve in the game. Examples of game objectives may include,but not limited to, beating an enemy, solving a puzzle, getting to alocation, obtaining an item/weapon/gear, obtaining a skill, unlocking anin-game event, finding a nonplayer character (NPC), unlocking a quest,progressing through a quest, completing a quest, getting through adungeon, beating a level, and the like. The specific objectives andtypes of objectives associated with a game may be highly specific to thegame's genre and content.

In some embodiments, the system may be configured to identify gameobjectives and update the game objectives database 140 based oncapturing game information (e.g. audio, video, and/or images) and/orinteracting with users. In some embodiments, game objectives may beidentified based on identifying points of game where users often requestgame guidance. In some embodiments, game objectives may be identifiedbased on in-game dialogue, alert sounds, and status indicating sounds.In some embodiments, game objectives may be identified based displayedtext and/or images. In some embodiments, game objectives may beidentified base on the content of the received game guide requests. Forexample, a game guide request from a user may specify an objective (e.g.“help me beat this boss,” “how do I get out of this dungeon?” “where isthe McGuffin?”). Game information such as audio segment, video, imagecontent may then be associated with the content of the game guiderequest in the game objectives database 140. In some embodiments, thesystem may use a machine learning algorithm to identify possible gameobjectives using game audio recordings, user game guide requests, anduser feedback to provided game guide items as inputs. In someembodiments, machine learning may identify the beststrategies/skills/routes/powerups or weapons to achieve the gameobjective, and/or identify the best content which facilitates theachievement of the game objective. In some embodiments, the system mayprompt the user to generate or link game guide content for identifiedgame objectives.

In some embodiments, one or more objectives may further be associatedwith one or more game states. A game state generally refers to acombination of one or more game variables. Examples of game variablesthat may make up a game state may include, but is not limited to,completed objective, in-game location, character/party characteristics,character/party statistic, character/party ability, character/partyequipment, items in possession, enemy characteristics, and the like. Asused herein, a game state may include one or more game variables. Insome embodiments, a game state used by the system need not include allvariables tracked by the game itself and which may or may not directlycorrespond to a variable value used by the game software. In someembodiments, the game states in the game objectives database 140 mayhave a hierarchical relationship to each other and/or may be organizedin a decision tree under a game and/or a game objective. In someembodiments, a game objective may have associated with it, one or morenarrowing questions for determining one or more game states associatedwith the game objective. For example, a narrowing question may relate tothe character's current equipment, whether the character has completedanother objective, whether the play sees a specific item/feature onscreen, etc. In some embodiments, narrowing questions may also be usedto identify a game objective. In some embodiments, a game state may haveassociated with it, one or more game guide content in the game guidedatabase 150. In some embodiments, game guide contents are tagged toterminal nodes of the game guidance decision tree. An example of a gameguidance decision tree is provided with reference to FIG. 5 herein.

The game guide database 150 generally comprises a computer-readablestorage medium storing game guide content items. In some embodiments,game guide content items may comprise text guide, audio guide, image,video, and/or link. In some embodiments, game guide content may compriseuser-generated content, crowd-sourced guide content, web-based content,links to online game guide content, official guide content, third-partyguide content, and/or machine-generated guide content. In someembodiments, the game guide database 150 may store copies of game guidecontent and/or store links to resources available on the internet (e.g.YouTube video, Twitch recording, FAQ, website, social media post etc.).In some embodiments, the game guide server 110 may be configured topopulate the game guide database 150 based on user interactions andrecordings of games. For example, a recording of a successful completionof an objective from one player may be provided to another player as aguide to achieve the objective. In some embodiments, the game guideserver 110 may prompt users to add user-generated guide content to thegame guide database 150 and may provide incentives (e.g. virtualcurrency, badges, virtual items) for user contribution. In someembodiments, the game guide server 110 may be configured to periodicallycrawl the web to aggregate game guide content and add the content thegame guide database 150. In some embodiments, the system may perform aweb search based on received game guide requests and add the searchresults to the game guide database 420. In some embodiments, the contentof the game guide request, information associated with the game, theobjective, and/or game state may be used as search queries to obtainadditional game guide resources for the database.

In some embodiments, the game guide content items in the game guidedatabase 150 may be tagged to one or more game objectives and/or gamestates in the game objectives database 140. In some embodiments, thesystem may be configured to associate game guide content items with gameobjectives and/or game states based on comparing the audio or video ofan audio/video content item with the recorded game audio segment,comparing a transcript of the recorded game audio segment to textcontent, and/or comparing user provided information with text, audio, orvisual information in the content item. In some embodiments, the gameguide content items in the game guide database 150 may be ranked basedon feedback received from users. In some embodiments, a game guidecontent item may be separately ranked for each of a plurality of gameobjectives and/or game state tracked in the game objectives database140. In some embodiments, feedback for ranking game guide content itemsmay comprise one or more of user response, user rating, and gameprogression detected based on an audio recording. In some embodiments,the system may assign confidence levels to one or more gameobjection/state and game guide content item associations and select gameguide content items based on the associated confidence levels.

While the game objectives database 140 and the game guide database 150are shown separately from the game guide server 110 in FIG. 1, in someembodiments, the game objectives database 140 and the game guidedatabase 150 may be implemented on the computer-readable memory storagedevice of the game guide server 110. In some embodiments, the gameobjectives database 140 and the game guide database 150 may beimplemented as a single database device and/or database structure. Insome embodiments, the user device 120 may be configured to directlyaccess one or more of the game objectives database 140 and the gameguide database 150 to provide game guide information and/or update thedatabases.

Referring next to FIG. 2, there is shown an apparatus for providing gameguidance. As shown in FIG. 2, a user device 200 comprises a controlcircuit 201, a memory 202, a microphone 203, and a network connector205. The user device 200 may generally be a processor-based device suchas a smart speaker, a virtual assistance device, a smart home system, asmartphone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, apersonal computer, a tablet computer, and the like. In some embodiments,the user device 200 may comprise a standalone device with no direct datacommunication with the game system and/or playback device such a gameconsole, a computer system, a smartphone, a television, a homeentertainment system, and the like. In some embodiments, the user device200 may be integrated with a game system and/or a playback device. Forexample, the same device may execute the game and the game guidanceapplication that captures and make use of the audio or video output ofthe game. The user device 200 is generally configured to record gameaudio, receive game guide request, and provide game guide information tothe user based on communications with a remote server system and/ordatabase. In some embodiments, the user device 200 may comprise the userdevice 120 described with reference to FIG. 1.

The control circuit 201 may comprise a processor, a microprocessor, acentral processing unit, an integrated circuit, an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), and the like. The control circuit 201 isconfigured to execute computer readable codes stored on the memory 202to record game audio and provide game guidance to users. The memory 202may comprise volatile and/or nonvolatile computer readable memorystorage device configured to store computer executable codes. In someembodiments, the memory 202 may further store one or more of recordingsof game audio, video, user profile information, and game-relatedinformation. In some embodiments, the memory 202 may comprise an audiobuffer for buffering audio recorded by the microphone 203 such that gameaudio recorded prior to a game guide request is received may beretrieved in after the game guide request is detected. In someembodiments video and/or screenshot captures are buffered such that gamevideo recorded prior to a game guide request is received may beretrieved after a game guide request is made. In some embodiments, thecontrol circuit 201 and the memory 202 may execute and store otherprograms such as an operating system, a mobile application, a virtualassistant, a music player program, and the like. In some embodiments,the user device 200 may be a dedicated and standalone game guidancedevice.

The network connector 205 comprises a network device configured to allowthe user device 200 to communicate over a network. In some embodiments,the network connector 205 may comprise a wireless data transceiver, aWi-Fi transceiver, a mobile data transceiver, a Bluetooth transceiver, awired data port, and the like. The control circuit 201 may communicatewith a game guide server via the network connector 205 to provide gameguidance to users.

The microphone 203 generally comprises an audio sensor for capturingsound around the user device 200. In some embodiments, the microphone203 may capture game sound produced by a computer simulated game andproduced by a playback device. In some embodiments, the microphone 203may detect voice commands from the user such as a game guide request.The speaker 204 may generally comprise an audio output device configuredto provide game guide information to the user. In some embodiments, themicrophone 203 and the speaker 204 may be used to engage the user ininteractive voice response to collect additional information foridentifying relevant game objective and/or game state.

In some embodiments, the user device 200 may comprise other userinput/output devices 206 such as a display screen, a touch screen, aprojection display device, a keypad, indicator lights, buttons, a motionsensor, a gesture sensor, and the like. In some embodiments, the controlcircuit 201 may further be configured to provide visual game guidancevia a display of the user device 200. In some embodiments, the controlcircuit 201 may provide a graphic user interface (GUI) for interactingwith the game guidance service via user input/output devices of the userdevice 200. In some embodiments, the other user input/output devices 206may comprise an optical sensor for capturing images from the video game.The captured images (video and/or still images) may also be used toidentify game, game objective, and/or game state. For example, thesystem may perform text and/or object recognition on captured gameimages to obtain objects and/or text that may be used to identify game,game objective, and/or game state.

In some embodiments, the user device 200 comprises a thin client thatprovides captured audio to a server and playback content provided by theserver. In some embodiments, the user device 200 may be configured totrack game progress and locally determine the game objective and/or gamestate and select relevant game guide content from a networked or localdatabase. In some embodiments, the user device 200 may be configured toperform one or more steps described with reference to FIGS. 3-4 herein.In some embodiments, the game guide server 110 may be omitted and theuser device 200 may be configured to select game guide content based oncaptured audio by directly retrieving information from the gameobjectives database 140 and the game guide database 150.

Referring next to FIG. 3, there is illustrated an example of a methodfor providing game guidance to a user. In some embodiments, the stepsshown in FIG. 3 may be performed by a user device at a user premisesand/or a remote server configured to provide game guidance over anetwork via the user device. In some embodiments, one or more the stepsshown in FIG. 3 may be performed by the user device 120 and the gameguide server 110 described with reference to FIG. 1 and the user device200 described with reference to FIG. 2 herein. Generally, the steps inFIG. 3 may be performed by one or more processor-based devicescomprising a control circuit and a memory storing a set ofcomputer-executable instructions.

In step 301, a game guide request is received. In some embodiments, thegame guide request may comprise a voice command received at a userdevice. The system may comprise a voice recognition algorithm foridentifying a voice command that comprises a request for game guidanceversus other types of voice command, game sound, or background sound. Insome embodiments, one or more specific phrases may be defined to triggera game guide request (e.g. “help me with this game”). In someembodiments, the game guide request may comprise a question that thesystem may use to identify a game or an objective (e.g. “how do I get ahorse?”).

In step 302, the system receives a recording of a game from the userdevice. In some embodiments, the recording of the game may comprise oneor more an audio segment, a video segment, and a still image. Therecording of the game generally refers to audio and/or image generatedby a computer simulated game, outputted via a playback device, andcaptured by a user device. In some embodiments, an audio segment of agame may comprise one or more of game dialogue audio, game backgroundmusic, and game environmental sound produced by a playback device duringgameplay. In some embodiments, the user device may be placed around auser playing a game and record sound around the user. In someembodiments, the audio segment may be recorded immediately afterreceiving the game guide request. In some embodiments, the user devicemay monitor game sounds and continuously buffer a set length of audiorecording (e.g. 5 seconds, 10 seconds, etc.). With an audio buffer, theaudio segment recorded prior to the user making the game guide requestmay be retrieved and used by the system. In some embodiments, the audiosegment is uploaded to the server with or in response to receiving agame guide request. In some embodiments, the game, the game objective,and/or game state may be identified via a plurality of audio segmentsrecorded by the user device over time. For example, the system may beconfigured to gather game state information continuously to aggregate alist of game states (e.g. items gathered so far, bosses beat, past NPCinteractions, completed objectives, etc.) as the user play through thegame, even in the absence of a game guide request.

In step 303, the system identifies the game and the game objective. Insome embodiments, the game and/or the game objective is identified basedon comparing the audio segment with game information stored in a gameobjectives database. In some embodiments, one or more game objectives inthe game objectives database 310 are associated with previously recordedgame audio. The game and/or the game objective may be identified basedon comparing audio segment(s) associated with game objectives in thegame objectives database 310 with game audio segment recorded by theuser device associated with the user making the game guide request. Insome embodiments, the game and/or the game objective may be identifiedbased on the game guide request. For example, the user may identify anobjective in the request (e.g. “how do I catch a chicken?”). In someembodiments, the game and/or the game objective may be furtheridentified based on narrowing questions in step 306 and step 307. Insome embodiments, the system may select a plurality of potential gameobjectives based on the audio segment and/or the game guide request,select a narrowing question based on a decision tree associated with thegame, provide the narrowing question to the user device, and identifyingthe game objective from among the plurality of potential game objectivesbased on a response to the narrowing question. For example, if the audiosegment is matched with a specific dungeon in the game, the narrowingquestion may ask the user to identify the floor or other text displayedon the screen. In some embodiments, a game objective may have associatedwith it, a plurality of branches associated with different game statesthat may be tagged with different game guide content. In such cases,steps 303-307 may be repeated for game states associated with anidentified objective prior to proceeding to step 304. For example, ifthe audio or video segment is matched with a specific boss battle, thenarrowing question may ask the user to identify their equipment and/orcharacter abilities to determine a game state. Game guide contentassociated with the objective (e.g. beating the boss) and specific gamestate (e.g. character ability and equipment) may then be selected instep 304. In some embodiments, the content of the game guide request mayalso be used to identify a game state associated with an objective. Forexample, if the user asks “how do I beat this boss as an archer?” thesystem may determine the character class based on the game guide requestwithout further narrowing questions. In some embodiments, steps 303-307may be performed for each level of a hierarchical tree until a terminalnode is reached prior to proceeding to step 304. An example of a gameguide tree is described with reference to FIG. 5 herein. In someembodiments, the system is configured to identify the game, a gameobjective, and/or a game state associated with a game objective based onone or more of captured game audio, the content of the game guiderequest, and narrowing questions using interactive voice response.

In some embodiments, if the system is unable to determine a game and/orgame objective in step 307, in step 321 the system may incentive theplayer to provide additional information relating to the game and/orgame objective to help update the game objectives database 310 and/orthe game guide database 320. In some embodiments, the system may promptuser to generate a game guide content once their objective is achieved.In some embodiments, the system may prompt to user to perform a keywordsearch for a guide content item in the game guide database 320 and/oronline and link the guide content item to their game objective and/orgame state.

The game objectives database 310 generally comprises a computer-readablestorage medium storing game and game objective information associatedwith a plurality of games. In some embodiments, the game objectivesdatabase 310 comprises a plurality of game objectives identified basedon game audio and/or game guidance requests recorded by the plurality ofuser devices. In some embodiments, the system may monitor the audiooutput of one or more game sessions to capture game objectiveinformation. In some embodiments, the game sessions may be recorded by aplurality of user devices and/or comprise user-uploaded content (e.g.game streaming broadcast, playthrough video recordings, etc.). In someembodiments, the system may record the content of game guide requestsreceived over time as game objectives. In some embodiments, the systemmay use machine learning to identify possible game objectives using gameaudio recordings and user game guide requests as inputs. In someembodiments, game objectives and game states in the game objectivesdatabase are arranged in a decision tree determined via machinelearning. In some embodiments, the game objectives and game states inthe game objectives database may be determined at least partially basedon one or more of official game guide, third-party game guide, webresources, user-generated content, and the like. In some embodiments,the game objectives, the game states, and the objective and game stateassociations may be dynamically updated based on interactions andfeedback with users over time. In some embodiments, the game objectivesdatabase 310 may comprise the game objectives database 140 describedwith reference to FIG. 1 herein.

In step 304, the system selects a game guide content item from the gameguide database to provide as game guidance to the user. In someembodiments, one or more game objectives in the game objectives database310 is associated with one or more content items and the content itemmay be selected based on the game objective identified in step 303. Insome embodiments, the system may navigate through the game guidedecision tree based on information gathered in steps 303, 306, and 307and provide game guidance content when a terminal node is reached. Insome embodiments, the game guide content may be ranked based onpreviously received feedback, and the content item may be selected basedon the ranking. In some embodiments, the system may perform A/B testingon a plurality of available content items by providing different contentitems to different users to determine and refine a ranking between thecontent items.

The game guide database 320 generally comprises a computer-readablestorage medium storing game guide resources. In some embodiments, gameguide content items may comprise text, audio, images, videos, and/orlinks. In some embodiments, game guide content may comprise officialguide content, third-party guide content, user-generated guide content,crowdsourced guide content, web-based content, and/or machine-generatedguide content. In some embodiments, the game guide database 320 maystore copies of game guide content and/or store links or guide contentavailable on the internet (e.g. YouTube video, Twitch recording, etc.).In some embodiments, the game guide content items in the game guidedatabase 320 may be tagged to one or more game objectives and/or gamestates in the game objectives database 310. In some embodiments, thegame guide content items in the game guide database 320 may be rankedbased on feedback information. In some embodiments, a game guide contentitem may be separately ranked for each of a plurality of game objectivesassociated with the content item. In some embodiments, the rankings ofgame guide content items and the associations between game guide contentitems and game objectives and/or states may be dynamically updated basedon interactions with users over time. In some embodiments, the gameguide database 320 may comprise the game guide database 150 describedwith reference to FIG. 1 herein.

In step 305, the content item is provided to the user. In someembodiments, the content item may comprise a speech script and/or anaudio clip that is provided via a speaker of the user device. In someembodiments, the content item may be displayed on a display screen ofthe user device or another device. In some embodiments, after step 305,the system may solicit feedback from the user in step 308. For example,the user device may ask the user “did that help?” or “did you find theitem?” to receive a yes/no response from the user. In some embodiments,if the feedback is negative, the system may return to step 303 and/or304 to provide further guidance. In some embodiments, the system maymodify the game objectives database 310 and/or update game guide itemrankings and/or confidence level based on the feedback. In someembodiments, the system may modify an association of the content itemand the game objective based on the feedback. For example, if a contentitem received several negative feedbacks for a game objective, thesystem may disassociate the content item from the game objective suchthat the content item would not be provided to another user requestinggame guide information for the objective. In some embodiments, thesystem may continue to monitor game audio and/or video after step 305 todetermine whether the user has successfully completed the objectiveand/or progress in the game. The user's in-game progression may be usedas feedback to further refine the game objectives database 310 and/orgame guide database 320. For example, if the sound of a locked dooropening is detected shortly after a game guide content item is provided,the opening sound may be treated as positive feedback.

In some embodiments, the steps shown in FIG. 3 may be repeated for eachgame guide request received at a user device. In some embodiments, agame guide server may execute multiple instances of the steps shown inFIG. 3 to provide game guidance service via a plurality of user devicesover a network. In some embodiments, the game objectives database 310and/or the game guide database 320 may be accessed to simultaneouslyprovide game guidance at a plurality of user devices to a plurality ofusers. In some embodiments, the game objectives database 310 and/or thegame guide database 320 may be continuously and dynamically updatedbased on game audio/video recordings and user interactions via aplurality of user devices.

While FIG. 3 generally describes the use of audio segments andrecordings, in some embodiments, one or more steps described in FIG. 3may also be performed on video and/or images captured from game play. Insome embodiments, information extracted from game video and/or imagecaptures may be used to identify game and/or game objective in step 303,select narrowing question in step 306, and/or select content item instep 304. For example, the system may perform text recognition to obtainthe name of an enemy and select a game guide content item by matchingcontent items with the name of the enemy. In another example, characterstatistics (e.g. class, strength, agility, intelligence) may beextracted from a screen capture of the character's status screen. Insome embodiments, information extracted from videos and/or images may beused in addition to or in place of audio segment information for one ormore steps described in FIG. 3.

Referring next to FIG. 4, there is illustrated an example of a methodfor aggregating and updating game guidance information according to someembodiments. In some embodiments, the steps shown in FIG. 4 may beperformed by a user device at a user premises and/or a remote serverconfigured to provide game guidance. In some embodiments, one or morethe steps shown in FIG. 4 may be performed by the user device 120 andthe game guide server 110 described with reference to FIG. 1 and theuser device 200 described with reference to FIG. 2 herein. Generally,the steps in FIG. 4 may be performed by one or more processor-baseddevices comprising a control circuit and a memory storing a set ofcomputer-executable instructions.

In step 401, the system records and monitors game audio. In someembodiments, step 401 may be performed with one or more audio/videocapture device such as a user device 120 and user device 200. In someembodiments, step 401 comprises recording audio in an audio buffer. Thebuffered audio is provided to a server when a user makes a game guildrequest. In some embodiments, step 401 comprises continuously recordingand upload audio/video to the server during a gaming session. In someembodiments, the system provides users an incentive (e.g. digitalcurrency, badges, etc.) to continuously record their gameplay for thepurpose of building a game guide. In some embodiments, the system mayidentify game objectives based on game sounds such as in-game dialogue,alert sounds, and sounds associated with the completion of an objective(e.g. battle won, door opened, quest completed, puzzle solved, etc.), orgame video (boss defeated, weapon or skill unlocked etc.)

In step 402, the system receives a game guide request from a user. Insome embodiments, the game guide request may comprise a voice command.In step 403, a game objective may be identified based on the content ofthe game guide request and/or the game audio captured just before,during, or after the game guide request is made. In some embodiments,the system may compare the recorded audio segment with audio segments inthe game objectives database 410 to determine whether the audio segmentmatches an existing objective. In some embodiments, the system maycompare the content of the game guide request with the game objectivesdatabase 410 to determine whether the game guide request matches anexisting objective. In some embodiments, if multiple game objectives canbe matched with the audio segment and/or the game guide request, thesystem may ask narrowing questions based on a decision tree to obtainmore information associated with the game objective and/or game state.

If no match is found between game guide request and an existing gameobjective, a new game objective may be created in the game objectivesdatabase 410. For a new game, the system may monitor multipleplaythroughs of the game to populate the game objectives database 410with possible objectives. When a new objective or a new state associatedwith an objective is identified, in step 404, the system may match thenew game objective and/or state with one or more game guide contentitems. In some embodiments, the content items may be matched to gameobjectives and states based on comparing the audio of an audio/videocontent item with the recorded game audio segment, comparing atranscript of the recorded game audio segment to text content, and/orcomparing user provided information with text, audio, or visualinformation in the game guidance content item. In some embodiments, thesystem may aggregate new game guide content in the game guide databaseand periodically match new game guide content items to existing gameobjectives and/or states in the game objectives database 410 to build upa dynamic game guide. In some embodiments, recorded game audio and/orgame guide request may be used as search queries to search for gameguide content in the game guide database 420 and/or on the web.

If the audio segment and/or game guide request can be matched with anexisting objective in the game objectives database 410, the system mayselect a game guide resource associated with the existing game objectivefrom the game guide database 420. In some embodiments, the system mayuse a voice response decision tree to identify the objective and/or gamestate and select the game guide resource based on the response.

In step 405, the system receives feedback on the provided game guidecontent. In some embodiments, the feedback may comprise a user vocalfeedback, a gesture feedback, a graphical user interface selection,and/or a change in monitored game audio. The feedback information may beused to update the game objectives database 410 in step 406 and/orupdate the game guide database in step 407. If the feedback is positive,the system may increase a confidence level of the game objective and/orgame objective hierarchy in the game objectives database 410 in step406. The system may further increase a relative ranking of the providedgame guide content item in the game guide database in step 407. If thefeedback is negative, the system may reduce the ranking of the providedgame guide content in step 407. In some embodiments, the system mayfurther reduce the confidence level of a decision tree node placementand/or change the hierarchical arrangement of a game state based on anegative feedback in step 406. In some embodiments, the feedbackreceived in step 405 may be used by a machine learning algorithm to addto, update, and modify game objectives, game states, and game guideassociations in the game objectives database 410 and the game guidedatabase 420. Feedback information may also be aggregated over time todetermine confidence levels associated with game objectives, gamestates, and game guide content item associations. The steps shown inFIG. 4 may generally be continuously repeated to update and refine adynamic game guide while providing game guide content to users.

While FIG. 4 generally describes the use of audio segments andrecordings, in some embodiments, one or more steps described in FIG. 4may be performed based on video and/or images captured from game play.In some embodiments, information extracted from game video and/or imagecaptures may be used to identify game and/or game objective in step 403and select game guide resource in step 404. Game objectives and statesin the game objective database 410 may be associated with informationfrom video/image captures (e.g. text, object recognition). For example,an objective associated with solving puzzle may be tagged with the textdisplayed along with the puzzle on screen and/or an image of the puzzlein the game objectives database 410. In some embodiments, informationextracted from videos and/or images may be used in addition to or inplace of audio segment information for one or more steps described inFIG. 4.

Referring next to FIG. 5, there is illustrated an example of a gameguide tree of game objectives and game states according to someembodiments. As shown in FIG. 5, each game 510 in a game objectivesdatabase may be associated with a plurality of objectives 520 a, 520 b,and 502 c. A game objective may generally refer to something a playerwants to achieve in the game. Examples of game objectives may include,but not limited to, beat an enemy, solve a puzzle, get to a location,obtain an item/weapon/gear, learn a skill, unlock an in-game event, finda nonplayer character (NPC), start a quest, progress through a quest,complete a quest, get through a dungeon, beat a level, and the like. Thespecific objectives and types of objectives associated with a game maybe highly specific to each game. In some embodiments, each objective mayhave one or more audio segments, videos, and/or images associated withthe objective. The system may identify the objective based on thecontent of user's game guide request and/or by matching captured gameinformation with game information associated with the objective. In someembodiments, the system may further be configured to ask narrowingquestion(s) to select between possible objectives if a plurality ofpossible matches are found. For example, if the player asks “how do Iopen the chest?” and the captured game audio indicates that the playeris a specific dungeon with three chests, the system may attempt todetermine the user's in-game location by asking a narrowing questionsuch as “which floor are you on?”

In some embodiments, an objective may be a terminal node in the gameguide tree, such as objective 520 b. In such cases, once the objectiveis identified, the system may provide associated game guide contentwithout further determination. Objective 520 b may represent anobjective whose solution is largely independent of game states. Forexample, if the objective is to obtain a specific item, and the item canbe obtained by traveling to a specific location without furtherrequirements, the objective may be a terminal node, and the game guidecontent may be provided without determining game state information.

In some embodiments, the objective may have associated with it, one ormore levels of game states. Objects with associated game states, such asobjective 520 a and objective 520 c may have different solutions and/ortips based on the game state. In one example, the objective 520 b may bea side quest with multiple stages. The first game states 530 a and 530 bmay correspond to the first stage (e.g. whether the player has metNPC1), and second game states 540 a and 540 b may correspond to thesecond stage (e.g. whether the player has obtained x number of items),and the third game states 550 a and 550 b may correspond to the thirdstage (e.g. whether the player has traveled to a specific location). Aspecific tip or solution may be associated with each terminal node underthe objective 520 b. In another example, the objective 520 c may be tobeat a specific enemy. The first game states 530 c, 530 d, and 530 e,may correspond to the character class (e.g. warrior, mage, etc.), andthe second game states 540 c and 540 d may correspond to availablecharacter skills. Specific solution/tip may be associated with eachterminal node that could help the player beat the enemy. Within the samegame and within the same objective, game states considered in eachbranch may vary depending on game design.

In some embodiments, the system may first attempt to identify the game510, an objective, and any relevant game state information usingrecorded game information (e.g. audio, visual information) and/or thegame guide request. In some embodiments, the system may track thecurrent objective and game states based on monitoring game audio overtime. For example, the system may be configured to automaticallydetermine a player class based on combat sounds prior to receiving agame guide request for a game objective that is associated with a gamestate related to player class. If a terminal node (objective or state)cannot be identified by audio recording and/or the content of the gameguide request, the system may use narrowing questions to get to a nextlevel node in the tree. In some embodiments, one or more objectives andlevels of game states may have associated with it, one or more narrowingquestions configured to obtain additional information. For example, ifthe system is unable to determine whether a player has an item necessaryto complete a side quest, the system may ask the player with a voiceprompt (e.g. “do you have an rope in your inventory?”) and select fromamong the game state nodes based on the user response. In someembodiments, the system may continue to prompt for additionalinformation via a voice response decision tree algorithm until aterminal node is reached. A game guide content item associated with theterminal may then be provided to the user.

In some embodiments, the system may be configured to modify the gameguide tree based on game audio and/or user feedback. For example, a newgame state may be added under an objective if a player's response to anarrowing question does not match an existing game state. In anotherexample, a terminal node may be changed to an intermediate node if theprovided game guide content receives negative feedback and the systemdetermines that game state information is needed to select an applicablegame guide content. In some embodiments, the nodes of the game guidetree may be added, removed, and rearranged based on a machine learningalgorithm using game audio, game guide requests, answers to narrowingquestions, and/or feedback as a learning set.

FIG. 5 is provided as an example only, a game may comprise any number ofobjectives and each objective may be associated with any number of gamestates. Each level of game guide tree may further include any number ofbranches.

In some embodiments, one or more of the embodiments, methods,approaches, and/or techniques described above may be implemented in oneor more computer programs or software applications executable by aprocessor-based apparatus or system. By way of example, suchprocessor-based apparatuses or systems may comprise a computer,entertainment system, game console, workstation, graphics workstation,server, client, portable device, pad-like device, etc. Such computerprogram(s) may be used for executing various steps and/or features ofthe above-described methods and/or techniques. That is, the computerprogram(s) may be adapted to cause or configure a processor-basedapparatus or system to execute and achieve the functions describedabove. For example, such computer program(s) may be used forimplementing any embodiment of the above-described methods, steps,techniques, or features. As another example, such computer program(s)may be used for implementing any type of tool or similar utility thatuses any one or more of the above-described embodiments, methods,approaches, and/or techniques. In some embodiments, program code macros,modules, loops, subroutines, calls, etc., within or without the computerprogram(s) may be used for executing various steps and/or features ofthe above-described methods and/or techniques. In some embodiments, thecomputer program(s) may be stored or embodied on a computer readablestorage or recording medium or media, such as any of the computerreadable storage or recording medium or media described herein.

Therefore, in some embodiments the present invention provides a computerprogram product comprising a medium for embodying a computer program forinput to a computer and a computer program embodied in the medium forcausing the computer to perform or execute steps comprising any one ormore of the steps involved in any one or more of the embodiments,methods, approaches, and/or techniques described herein. For example, insome embodiments the present invention provides one or morenon-transitory computer-readable storage mediums storing one or morecomputer programs adapted or configured to cause a processor-basedapparatus or system to execute steps comprising: receiving, via anetwork connector, a game guide request from a user, receiving, via thenetwork connector, an audio segment recorded from a game by a userdevice associated with the user, identifying the game and a gameobjective from a game objectives database based on the audio segment,selecting a content item in a game guide database based on the gameobjective, and providing, to the user device via the network connector,the content item to the user.

While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means ofspecific embodiments and applications thereof, numerous modificationsand variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention set forth in the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for providing game guidance content,comprising: a game guide database; a game objectives database; a networkconnector configured to communicate with a plurality of user devicesover a network; and a control circuit coupled to the game guidedatabase, the game objectives database, and the network connector, thecontrol circuit being configured to: receive, via the network connector,a game guide request from a user; receive, via the network connector, anaudio segment recorded from a game by a user device associated with theuser; identify the game and a game objective from the game objectivesdatabase based on the audio segment; select a content item in the gameguide database based on the game objective; and provide, to the userdevice via the network connector, the content item to the user.
 2. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the audio segment comprises game dialogueaudio, game background music, and/or game environmental sound producedby a playback device during gameplay.
 3. The system of claim 1, whereinthe audio segment is recorded by the user device prior to receiving thegame guide request.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the game objectiveis identified further based on: selecting a plurality of potential gameobjectives based on the audio segment; selecting a narrowing questionbased on an interactive voice response decision tree; providing thenarrowing question to the user device; identifying the game objectivebased on a response to the narrowing question.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the content item is selected further based on: providing anarrowing question associated with the game objective to the userdevice; identifying a game state based on a response to the narrowingquestion; and selecting the content item based on the game objective andthe game state.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the content item isselected further based on ranking a plurality of content itemsassociated with the game objective based on feedback information.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the control circuit is further configured to:receive feedback on the content item, wherein the feedback comprises oneuser response, user rating, and/or game progression detected based on anaudio recording; and modify an association of the content item and thegame objective based on the feedback.
 8. The system of claim 1, whereinthe game objectives database comprises a plurality of game objectivesidentified based on game audio and game guide requests recorded by theplurality of user devices.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein gameobjectives in the game objectives database are arranged in a decisiontree determined via machine learning.
 10. The system of claim 1, whereinthe game guide database comprises text guide, audio guide, video guide,user-generated content, and/or links to online game guide content.
 11. Amethod for providing game guidance content, comprising: receiving, via anetwork connector coupled to a control circuit, a game guide requestfrom a user; receiving, via the network connector, an audio segmentrecorded from a game by a user device associated with the user;identifying, with the control circuit, identify the game and a gameobjective from a game objectives database based on the audio segmentselecting, with the control circuit, a content item in a game guidedatabase based on the game objective; and providing, to the user devicevia the network connector, the content item to the user.
 12. The methodof claim 11, wherein the audio segment comprises game dialogue audio,game background music, and/or game environmental sound produced by aplayback device during gameplay.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein theaudio segment is recorded by the user device prior to receiving the gameguide request.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the game objective isidentified further based on: selecting a plurality of potential gameobjectives based on the audio segment; selecting a narrowing questionbased on an interactive voice response decision tree; providing thenarrowing question to the user device; identifying the game objectivebased on a response to the narrowing question.
 15. The method of claim11, wherein the content item is selected further based on: providing anarrowing question associated with the game objective to the userdevice; identifying a game state based on a response to the narrowingquestion; and selecting the content item based on the game objective andthe game state.
 16. The method of claim 11, wherein the content item isselected further based on ranking a plurality of content itemsassociated with the game objective based on feedback information. 17.The method of claim 11, further comprising: receive feedback on thecontent item, wherein the feedback comprises user response, user rating,and/or game progression detected based on an audio recording; and modifyan association of the content item and the game objective based on thefeedback.
 18. The method of claim 11, wherein the game objectivesdatabase comprises a plurality of game objectives identified based ongame audio and game guide requests recorded by a plurality of userdevices.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein game objectives in the gameobjectives database are arranged in a decision tree determined viamachine learning.
 20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring one or more computer programs configured to cause aprocessor-based system to execute steps comprising: receiving, via anetwork connector, a game guide request from a user; receiving, via thenetwork connector, an audio segment recorded from a game by a userdevice associated with the user; identifying the game and a gameobjective from a game objectives database based on the audio segment;selecting a content item in a game guide database based on the gameobjective; and providing, to the user device via the network connector,the content item to the user.